BWCA Outfitter for Canoeing and Camping TripEquipment for Canoeing and Camping in the BWCAPreparedness is everything for a successful and enjoyable trip into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. Over our 80 years of being a BWCA outfitter we have carefully selected equipment that is practical, as light weight as is reasonable, easy to use, and our foods are as tasty as we can find. We do not pick the fanciest equipment with all the show-and-tell buckles and straps, but rather the good usable items you need for a first class trip. You can select from two types of canoes—Kevlar and Royalex, including solo models. Kevlar are the lightest and we offer Wenonah, Souris River and Mad River canoes in a variety of models. The Royalex are tougher for day to day use, but they weigh a few pounds more. All come with comfortable portaging yokes (or at least as comfortable as they get). You personally select your paddle so it is sized correctly and is the style you prefer.. Our Duluth style packs are color coded to make it easier for you to know where your gear is. Personal packs are Duluth #3 style with quick release clasps (we also have some #4 larger packs if you need them), your equipment is in similar packs but with a different color, and your food is in a very special design that includes foam insulation on all sides, bottom and top. One thing we do is give each person their own personal pack for your trip convenience. We use commercial grade tents, which means a double sewn waterproof floor, no-see-um netting for the screens and a rainfly. Three sizes are available with capacities from 2 to 6 people. Lightweight tarps are part of our outfitting equipment to use as a ground cloth and dining fly. We use sierra design cups as a multipurpose piece of equipment—from eating your oatmeal, to drinking your beverage, to eating your dessert—a very practical way to reduce the number of items you carry and wash at every meal. We also provide extra tall sleeping bags with our complete outfitting packages. |
A Justine Story...
You personally select the paddle for your canoe trip so that it is the style and size you prefer. Justine the CarpenterAs a child growing up, Justine had lived in a home where chores were handled by the staff. All this changed when they bought Gunflint Lodge. The Depression had ruined her father and they were living on a very tight budget. Justine had to learn to do chores. Around any resort there are plenty of carpentry projects. Her husband Bill was a fair carpenter. One of their first projects in 1934 was building what we knew as Cabin #5. It was a learning experience since neither had ever built a log cabin. They must have done a pretty good job since we rented it until 2001. The next project was a log cabin home for them. Once again they did all the work. That cabin, with many additions and remodels, is still standing today. When we did our last major remodeling, Sue helped strip paint off the interior logs. We were surprised to find out that gravity alone held the logs in place. Although Justine continued to do many cabin building projects, the carpentry guests saw the most was her furniture making. When the main lodge burned in 1953, the insurance payment covered the lumber bill of the new building. Charley Boostrom brought in a crew to erect the exterior walls of the main building but Justine and a few helpers worked right along with them. The lodge burned in June and by August they were serving meals in the new building. Only the kitchen was completely finished. That fall the Kerfoot family and Eleanor Matsis shingled the lodge. There was not enough money for tarpaper under the shingles. Justine and Eleanor also laid by hand the oak floor in the front desk area, the main room and the dining room. The work was done on hands and knees. Each board had to be pound in tightly against the previous one. Each nail had to be dipped in oil so it would not split the floor boards. Over the winter the family lived in a home closer to town so the kids could go to school. Justine and Eleanor used the time to build all the dining room tables and chairs. It was another learning experience. Justine said her first chair fell apart right in front of her. They came up with a new design. The table tops and chair seats were built of paper birch. All the legs and chair backs were red birch. We used that furniture from 1954 to 1993. Once again Justine had learned her lessons well. |
Gunflint Northwoods Outfitters |